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Reforming the United Nations for Peace and Security

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Comments on <strong>the</strong> Report of <strong>the</strong> High-level Panel onThreats, Challenges, <strong>and</strong> ChangeMuchkund DubeyPresident, Council <strong>for</strong> Social DevelopmentIndiaThe Report of <strong>the</strong> UN Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on Threats,Challenges, <strong>and</strong> Change makes a useful contribution to <strong>the</strong> ongoingdebate on UN re<strong>for</strong>ms. 40 It contains several interesting ideas <strong>and</strong> concretesuggestions that deserve to be discussed seriously with a view to arrivingat a consensus. This paper reviews <strong>the</strong> positive <strong>and</strong> negative features of<strong>the</strong> Panel report <strong>and</strong> concludes by offering an alternative set of proposals.POSITIVE FEATURESThe Panel has done a commendable job in identifying six main categoriesof threats to international peace <strong>and</strong> security <strong>and</strong> bringing out <strong>the</strong>irramifications. In particular, it makes very useful suggestions on how tomeet <strong>the</strong> threat of terrorism, emphasizing a broad-based approach thatincludes both coercive measures <strong>and</strong> measures to address root causes. Theagreement reached among <strong>the</strong> Panel members on <strong>the</strong> definition ofterrorism marks an important step <strong>for</strong>ward, as it can facilitate <strong>the</strong>adoption by <strong>the</strong> General Assembly of a comprehensive convention onterrorism, which is sorely needed to combat <strong>the</strong> menace.The Panel has rightly questioned <strong>the</strong> legality of unilateral preventiveaction under Article 51, <strong>and</strong> has instead commended collective actionunder <strong>the</strong> UN Charter. The Panel’s observations that <strong>the</strong> <strong>Security</strong> Councilhas <strong>the</strong> authority to “address <strong>the</strong> full range of security threats with which40 A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility. Report of <strong>the</strong> High-level Panel on Threats,Challenges, <strong>and</strong> Change. New York: <strong>United</strong> <strong>Nations</strong>, 2004. Online athttp://www.un.org/secureworld/report2.pdf55

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